As you know, City Council will decide on significant issues such as the city hall project, STRs, the budget and our revenue sources, and the comprehensive plan. In our small community, there are many ways we already engage with residents. But we are a new Council facing several big challenges, and we want to include you in the process.

Since January, the Council has been working on a thoughtful, wide-ranging communications plan with a multi-pronged approach to help you help us. The plan centers on:

• Education so the community understands what, how and why policy decisions are made. 
  
  
• Listening to residents to gather ideas, thoughts and concerns that we can take into consideration when we are making policy. 

You will see this plan fully come to fruition over time. However, we are eager to start substantive listening sessions and will kick it off with Conversation with Councilors in April. 

These sessions will be on Tuesdays and Thursdays at the Manzanita library and will include two councilors at a time. To ensure your voice is heard, we’ll keep the attendance to 15. Each session throughout the year will have a designated topic, and we ask that you sign up for just one session per topic allowing us to hear from as many people as possible. The specifics will be posted on the city’s website.

The April sessions will cover our options for financing the city hall project. Sign-up information will be available on the city’s website next week. Although the two councilors will be there to listen, we’ll do our best to provide relevant information or clarifications. 

Please come with your ideas!
They’ll help us be better positioned to make city policy that residents support.
And remember, this is a safe venue for you to be heard—and we want to hear from everyone, not just the loudest voices!